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BRUSSELS, Dec 9 (Reuters) - The European Commission granted duty-free access on Tuesday to 16 developing countries for thousands of products, to start next year and run until the end of 2011.
The countries are Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Georgia, Guatemala, Honduras, Mongolia, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, Sri Lanka and Venezuela, the European Union's executive arm said in a statement.
The countries' status will give them special trade preferences under the GSP+ scheme, in addition to standard concessions in the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP).
The EU offers GSP+ status to vulnerable developing countries that have ratified and effectively implemented 27 core conventions under the United Nations and International Labour Organisation on human and labour rights.
However, the eligibility of two of the countries listed -- El Salvador and Sri Lanka -- was under investigation by the European Commission over their implementation of certain U.N. and ILO conventions, the statement said.
"While the investigations are ongoing, the countries continue to receive preferential access, but depending on the findings they could be withdrawn from the scheme," it said. It said GSP+ country beneficiaries generated 4.7 billion euros ($6 billion) of trade with EU countries in 2007, with a nominal duty loss to EU coffers of more than 357 million euros, compared with standard GSP rates of import duty.
The duty-free access means a considerable tariff reduction over rates applied under the regular GSP scheme, it said. Tariff cuts include tobacco, various fruits, vegetables, fish and honey, ranging up to 52 percent for some products.
"GSP+ is at the heart of our pro-development trade policy. The decision today ensures that sustainable development and good governance will continue to be rewarded," EU Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton said in the statement. (Reporting by Jeremy Smith, editing by Dale Hudson)